William Golding utilizes a number of different adaptable symbols within the story to show how the schoolboys are transformed by their new life on the otherwise unpopulated island. Fire, for instance, represents hope and safety during the early stages of the novel. This is proven through dialogue in which Ralph, the newly elected leader of the group, addresses the assembly of children before him and proclaims that, “We can help them find us… we must make smoke on the top of the mountain. We must make a fire” (Golding 38). Ralph’s statement that by making a fire, they “can help them find us” shows that the primary purpose of the fire is to help them be rescued and returned to safety, consequently indicating that the fire symbolizes safety. Additionally, Ralph is able to ignite a spark of hope inside the boys when he says that, “we can help them find us”; by telling the group that it is indeed possible to not only be rescued, but to also take action to help them be rescued even sooner, Ralph fills the other schoolboys with hope.
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However, towards the end of the book, fire’s symbolic meaning morphs from hope and safety to leisure and acceptance of their circumstances. This is evident through Golding’s use of dialogue in which Ralph exclaims, “‘Look at that! Call that a signal fire? That’s a cooking
However, towards the end of the book, fire’s symbolic meaning morphs from hope and safety to leisure and acceptance of their circumstances. This is evident through Golding’s use of dialogue in which Ralph exclaims, “‘Look at that! Call that a signal fire? That’s a cooking